About this time last year, the creator and stars of Veronica Mars introduced a Kickstarter campaign seeking to fund a movie that would give closure to the abruptly canceled TV mystery series.

The online fundraising offered renewed hope to fervent fans, who had clamored for more since the CW dropped the show in 2007.

Those fans — affectionately dubbed “Marshmallows,” per a reference in the pilot episode — responded without hesitation.

In 11 short hours, in fact, the campaign had reached the $2 million goal established by Warner Bros. studio executives; and, through the 30-day run of the solicitation, raised $5.7 million.

Alexis Cole, a law student at Ohio State University who had all but given up on a Veronica Mars future, was among the record-breaking 91,585 contributors.

“There was a lot of talk about this happening, so, when it finally looked like it actually would happen, I said, ‘Absolutely,’” said Cole, who chipped in $35.

Beginning on Friday, she and fellow Marshmallows everywhere will realize their much-anticipated return on investment when the film Veronica Mars opens at AMC theaters nationwide.

“I’ve been waiting for this for so long,” the 28-year-old said. “It’s my favorite show — and I like a lot of shows.”

Simultaneous with the release in theaters, digital copies will be made available to Kickstarter backers who donated $35 or more; others will be able to access it via iTunes, on demand (with participating cable providers) and through other digital retailers. (Due later this month is the first book in a new Veronica Mars mystery series, which picks up where the film leaves off.)

When viewers last saw the TV series — it premiered in 2004 on UPN but fell victim in 2007 to the merger of UPN and the WB, which became the CW — the sharp-witted title character played by Kristen Bell was finishing her freshman year of college, dating Stosh “Piz” Piznarski and committed to a summer internship with the FBI.

As the movie opens, nine years have passed — and Veronica, recently out of law school, is heading back to Neptune, Calif., the fictional coastal town where the series was set. Her bad-boy ex-boyfriend, Logan Echolls (Jason Dohring), is accused of murder; and Veronica, who thought she had left her private-investigator life behind, will soon be on the case.

Most of the actors from the TV series — who, like their fans, were eager for a revival — signed on for the movie.

Bell — who moved on to various films, appearing in Forgetting Sarah Marshall and voice acting in the Oscar-winning Frozen — recently told The New York Times that she never doubted the viability of the Kickstarter campaign.

“In every press interview I’ve had in the last seven years, the interviewer has asked me, ‘Will there ever be a Veronica Mars movie?’” Bell said. “So I assumed there was a fair amount of interest.”

More like fan-demonium.

Mark Thompson, a welder in Cincinnati, was so attached to the wit of Veronica Mars that, after the show’s cancellation, he co-founded Neptune Rising: The Veronica Mars Movement, an online forum and social-media campaign.

Thompson, a 49-year-old father of three grown children, especially liked the father-daughter relationship between Veronica and Keith Mars (Enrico Colantoni).

Through Neptune Rising, he rallied fellow fans, who sent marshmallows and Mars candy bars to the cable network; arranged online question-and-answer sessions with cast members; and even rented a plane to fly a banner promoting DVD sales.

Such efforts to save the show remained strong for about three years, Thompson said. Even after the support waned, though, he and others kept the website going to remind Marshmallows “that there is still a voice for them.”

Then came the Kickstarter effort — and a renewed frenzy.

“It was a breath of fresh air,” said Thompson, who wishes he could have donated more than the $50 he did. “I just want the movie to do well.”

The Kickstarter campaign, show creator Rob Thomas said, wouldn’t have happened without the grass-roots efforts.

“Sending the Mars bars ... (and pursuing other paths) may not have paid off immediately, but they paid off in the long run. Neither Kristen nor I would have launched the Kickstarter if we didn’t believe there was some groundswell.”

Responsible for that groundswell were people such as Emily Bean, 24, of Reynoldsburg.

A die-hard fan since the pilot, she hopes that the $50 she donated toward the movie buys her some closure.

“We want to know our people are going to be OK,” Bean said.

Nicole Hallberg of the West Side, a teenager when Veronica Mars first aired, was instantly drawn to the strong title character.

Veronica “is quirky and smart,” she said — “a modern-day Nancy Drew.”

The show appeals to people on various levels, Thomas said, but one general strength stands out: Veronica’s ability to “kick ass.”

“Teenage years are years of being self-conscious — beholden to what your friends think, what your enemies think, what that cute boy thinks,” he said. “Veronica has this thing that she doesn’t care what other people think of her. She’s been to hell and is on the other side; that’s her ‘superpower.’ ”

It’s also what continues to draw new fans into Neptune.

Leticia Wiggins began watching the show on DVD during the summer at the urging of her friend Cole, the OSU law student.

Although Wiggins had her doubts about the show, she was pleasantly surprised by its serious themes, including race relations, sexual assault and socioeconomic disparities.

“Everything seems black and white at first, but then there are lots of nuances,” said the 25-year-old, an OSU doctoral student who lives in Victorian Village. “It’s definitely a lot more complex.”

She looks forward to seeing what mystery Thomas has cooked up for the movie.

Cole, Wiggins and several other friends will spend the week re-watching the series on DVD and concocting Veronica Mars-style outfits to wear to the movie theater.

“When they announced the movie day, I was so excited because we are on spring break,” Cole said. “It gives us time to prepare.”